Agricultural museum "Zoeterstede"

Location: Sint-Pietersdijk 1, 8340 Lapscheure
Opening hours: private museum - only by appointment between April and end of October with Mr. and Mrs. Van De Sompele, tel. 050/500 240)

This very interesting private museum started from a hobby that went out of control: the unlimited love for farming.  The now retired farmer Wilfried Van De Sompele and his wife gladly give a tour to all who is interested.  In the stables and a barn of this old polderfarmhouse, a large collection of rural heritage is displayed.

The setup is based on a large number of old schoolplates: these plates depict how life was "in the old days": the milking of a cow, making cheese, preparation of butter, the harvest, ploughing, sowing,...  But also other crafts are represented: the metal worker, the fisherman, the miller,...  Around each plate a nice exposition has been made with the appliances that were used at that time. 

Next to that you will see an interesting collection of larger equipment such as carts, wagons and planting machines.  You can even admire the evolution in ploughing: from simple wooden specimens to modern iron ploughs. 

But there is more to this museum than agriculture.  You can see displays of the life as it was around the "Leuvense Stoof" (a locally famous kind of stove), old household appliances, remnants from the Second World War and even the interior of an old classroom.